Full and true disclosure question treated as fact; no question of law arose for reference under income tax law.

Whether the assessee had fully and truly disclosed all material facts for assessment was treated as a factual question because it turned on appraisal of the books of account and the examiner's report. The Tribunal's finding that disclosure was complete meant the statutory precondition for action under section 34(1)(a) was not shown on the record. As no genuine question of law arose from that finding, the request for a reference under section 66(2) was correctly rejected. The refusal to require a reference was therefore upheld in favour of the Revenue.

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Issues: Whether the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal's finding that the assessee had fully and truly disclosed all material facts necessary for assessment was a question of fact, so that no question of law arose for reference and the request under section 66(2) was rightly rejected.

Analysis: The Tribunal examined the materials produced at the original assessment, including the books of account and the report of the examiner of accounts, and concluded that the assessee had disclosed all material facts necessary for assessment. The Court held that the real controversy was whether the precondition for action under section 34(1)(a) existed, namely, omission or failure to disclose fully and truly all material facts. On the facts of the case, that determination depended on appraisal of the evidence and was therefore factual in character. Since the question framed for reference was misconceived and no genuine question of law arose from the Tribunal's order, the High Court was justified in refusing to require a reference.

Conclusion: No question of law arose from the Tribunal's finding, and the refusal to make a reference was upheld in favour of the Revenue.

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